Sue Chaisson and her son Alex, 7, along with son Vince, 4, were dressed as fishermen, and won a prize for best dressed.
Aye, matey, it’s pirates who take the treasure
Sue Chaisson and her son Alex, 7, along with son Vince, 4, were dressed as fishermen, and won a prize for best dressed.
For the Cliffhangers - aka the D’Amato family and friends - nooses, sabers, and a pirate spirit were all part of an afternoon with a lot of fun and a dose of learning.
“Whoever gets the most coins wins. We’re going to steal the coins. It’s a pirate thing,’’ said Cindy D’Amato, who with her husband, Dick, led the team to victory at the second Jenkins Elementary School Treasure Hunt in Scituate last Saturday.
The Cliffhangers consisted of Dick and Cindy D’Amato; twins Jocelyn and Colby, 7; Alex D’Amato, 16, and his high school friends Lawrie Whitmore, 16, and Andrew Zaccardi, 15.
The three high school members of the team, wearing nooses around their necks to scare competitors, said they had so much fun they would keep participating even after they graduate from Scituate High and go to college.
More than 200 children, parents, and friends followed a treasure map created by Jenkins School Parent-Teacher Organization volunteers. Families shot out of the school’s cafeteria and into decorated cars, trucks, and SUVs, then headed to points all around Scituate as they followed clues to coins and a treasure of historical facts, math quizzes, and science knowledge cloaked in fun.
Clues included facts about historical homes and buildings in town and each puzzle led to another clue and to more coins, which could be coerced, bribed, or taken from other participants. Prizes included gift baskets of donated items and area gift certificates.
Sue Chaisson, dressed in a bright yellow raincoat and carrying small fishing rods and nets, said the family missed the hunt last year and planned for weeks to join this year’s adventure.
Her 9-year-old son, Collin, thought up the family’s costume and theme, “The Fearless Farsighted Fishermen,’’ who, with their thick goggles, could “spot a clue from a mile away,’’ Susan Chaisson said.
Unfortunately, she added, Collin became sick and could not join the fun Saturday. Representing the Mr. Magoo-like team were Susan and sons Alex, 7, and Vince, 4. Their father, Brian, stayed home with Collin.
“We’re going to try to win for them,’’ she said.
Chaisson said the family was on guard for the bribe-and-steal aspect of the hunt, especially from Selectman Anthony Vegnani’s team, which has become infamous for extorting coins from other competitors during last year’s hunt. “That Vegnani - he’s a troublemaker,’’ Chaisson joked.
Coming in second behind the D’Amato family were the Brook Street Buccaneers, made up of the O’Connell and Thomas families. In third place were the Incumbents, a team made up of the Vegnanis.
Other winners were:
■Best-dressed team: Fearless Farsighted Fishermen; Chaisson family.
■Best-decorated car: Cliff Wrecked; Adams, Browne, and Sanchez families.
■Most creative name: The Arrghoffers; Marhoffer family.
L.E. Crowley can be reached at lecrowley1@yahoo.com; visit www.boston.com/scituate for more news about Scituate. 
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
